Back To School with AboutOne & $500 AMEX Gift Card Giveaway!

More students are going back to school this week. It can be easily told by the number of school buses running on the road. The start of the new school year means a noticeable change in schedule for both the kids and parents. There are a variety of calendars to keep up with: the school calendar, after school activities calendar, special events calendar, volunteer work calendar, and so on so forth. How do you stay on top of all of them? One of the major challenges for moms during the back-to-school season is how to get organized and avoid chaotic situations.

Each mom has her own tips and tricks for keeping things in order. More and more organizational tools, both online and offline, have been developed to help make a busy mom's life easier. One great example of such tools is AboutOne, which offers a digital filing system and more to assist you in managing different aspects of your life, including important contacts, family memories, health records, valuable possessions, and education history, along with all appointments and deadlines you need to take note of. It's the most comprehensive and versatile online organizational system I have ever tried.

Besides the schedule challenge, moms are also faced with growing piles of handouts and homework sheets kids bring home from school. You may begin to wonder how to declutter without losing any crucial information. AboutOne has a neat feature that allows you to store school records for all of your kids. You can easily keep track of their assignments, test results, awards, and upload images of their completed school work, art and science projects, or anything you think is worth keeping a record of. It's extremely helpful for kids in high school to put together a college application with all the necessary information conveniently stored in one place.



You can enjoy all the AboutOne features for just $30 per year. You may test drive it for free before you decide whether it's the right system for your family. No strings attached!

The Giveaway

AboutOne and the Global Influence Network have teamed up to bring us a fantastic giveaway. One Grand Prize winner will receive a $500 AMEX gift card, an upgrade to a free subscription to AboutOne.com, and a $250 donation to the school of her choice! All other entries will receive an email with a code for 25% off a one year subscription to AboutOne.com.

Please follow 2 mandatory steps to enter the giveaway:

1. Sign up for AboutOne free trial through this link. The 17-day free trial gives you 17 full days of usage with no expiration date. No credit card information is required! You must sign up through the above link to be eligible.

2. Fill out this secure entry form with all required information.

The giveaway ends September 9th at 11:59 p.m. ET. Open to U.S. residents age 18 or older. Limit one entry per person.

Disclosure: I was compensated for my time by the Global Influence Network, who directly administers the giveaway and handles prize fulfillment.

Celebrate Christmas in July with Storkie.com

As a child, I wished every day were Christmas so that I could get nice gifts all year long. Well, there is still time to celebrate Christmas in July with fun activities, dazzling decorations, cool parties, and unique Christmas cards!

Celebrating Christmas in July is a great way to reunite with family members, reconnect with old friends, and to spread the holiday cheer and merry spirit to everyone around you. Concerned about the costs associated with an extra holiday? Don't be. I'm sure you've got tons of seemingly useless stuff lying round that can be turned into cute Christmas decorations. Empty cereal boxes, paper towel rolls, yogurt cups, and old Christmas cards all make perfect raw materials for simple but fun art and craft projects.Waste can be transformed into treasures with just a little creativity and imagination. Besides, you and your child can spend some quality bonding time while making room decorations together.

Started by a work-at-home mom, Storkie features a large selection of high quality custom made party invitations and greeting cards good for a variety of occasions. If you're the kind of person who plans things well ahead, you may start shopping for Christmas cards right now. You would love the abundance of card choices on Storkie.com, which provides hundreds of innovative designs, along with Christmas themed address labels, envelope seals and napkins.

Finding the right words to put on Christmas card is quite a challenge for me. It's a sweet surprise that Storkie offers a decent list of Christmas card sayings and wording ideas on their website. The site also utilizes iDesign interactive card design tool to make card customization a breeze. Let your creative juices flowing and impress your family and friends with cards that they can't find anywhere else!

Merry Christmas in July!

Disclosure: I was compensated for my time for writing this post as a member of Global Influence.

Make Mom Smile with Tiny Prints Mother’s Day Cards

With Mother's Day just a few weeks away,  Tiny Prints has already got over 500 different Mother's Day cards in store for you! Whether you want funny pictures, witty remarks, vibrant colors, elegant styles, or simple, hearty greetings; whether you're looking for a card for your mom, mother-in-law, or mommy friend, they have the right kind of card for you. Sending a Tiny Prints card is sure to make a mom smile on her big day!

My mom has been a source of constant inspiration for me. She instilled in me a lot of important values and qualities that I find particularly beneficial for my life. I'm very grateful for all the parenting advice and support she has offered since I started to have my own child. My favorite piece of advice from her is to lead by example. She is the role model I've been looking up to since I was a little girl.

Parents are the first and perhaps most influential teachers of their children. Babies and kids love to imitate what the adults do, be it good or bad. It's therefore important for parents to set a good example for their kids in all aspects of life, from eating habits to social skills and to moral values. I've noticed that my son follows exactly the same steps as me when he washes his hands and brushes his teeth. He remembers to turn off the tap when he is brushing or applying hand soap. He also remembers to put empty bottles and cans into the recycle bin instead of the trash can.

Leading by example not only benefits my child, but also motivates me to improve myself and watch my behavior in his presence.

About Tiny Prints
Tiny Prints provides simple, modern and unique stationery from Father’s Day Cards to personalized greeting cards to thank you cards, business cards, and even custom wedding invitations or photo birth announcements. Offering exclusive designs from the nation’s top designers, easy card personalization, a powerful preview engine and top-notch customer service and paper quality, their designs have been lauded by numerous television networks, publications and celebrities. With Tiny Prints by your side commemorating every holiday and momentous occasion is a cinch! They offer perfect party invitations for every occasion and memorable personalized photo-gifts like notebooks, photo books and calendars to commemorate the event.


Disclosure: I received a Tiny Prints gift code from Global Influence for writing this post. No monetary exchange took place. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Pretty Neat Review & Giveaway ($250+ in Prizes)!

~~The giveaway is now closed. Congrats to winner Allison!~~

It is my wish to keep my home spotlessly clean and meticulously organized, but it's been quite a challenge to keep everything well in place with a toddler playing around. It made me feel frustrated at times about not being able to achieve what I wish. I'm so glad to have read this enlightening new book called Pretty Neat: The Buttoned-Up Way to Get Organized & Let Go of Perfection, which shows me how to increase efficiency and be happy with being imperfectly organized. The book is coauthored by Alicia Rockmore and Sarah Welch, the creators of buttoned up organizational products.

Written in an easy-to-read, conversational style, Pretty Neat offers tons of practical tips for tackling common organizational challenges that busy moms have to face on a daily basis: clutter at home, toy tsunamis, inbox overload, meal preparation and more. It includes interviews of real moms who have developed their own systems of organization to save time and sanity while having to juggle between work, family, and the hustle and bustle of life. The tips or tricks presented in the book are easy to follow and can help you keep clutter under control without being stressed out.

My favorite part of the book is Chapter 11: Tame Your Inboxes. It provides three simple and feasible steps to help me deal with the problem of inbox overload. I have multiple email and social media accounts that I need to check every day. There were times when I dreaded opening my inboxes because of the volume of messages that awaited attention. I also receive dozens of letters and packages by conventional mail. Processing mails and emails take up a considerable amount of my time. The fear of missing an important mail or message has been a constant source of organizational stress for me.

After reading Pretty Neat, I feel better knowing that I'm not alone on this issue. I've started trying some of the strategies suggested in the book with regard to filing, labeling and prioritizing emails and they have proven quite effective in reducing clutter in my inboxes. I don't want to give away too much in detail here because I hope you'll benefit directly from reading the book yourself.

You can get your own copy of Pretty Neat at Buttoned Up for only $14.95. It's a great value considering the time and trouble it will save you through getting better organized. It's a book you may refer to often for ideas and inspiration.

The Giveaway

Alicia and Sarah have generously offered to give one of my lucky readers a copy of their new book Pretty Neat! But that's not all. The winner of my giveaway will also be automatically entered into an additional drawing of a Grand Prize including a $200 gift card (same as cash such as Visa or AmEx) plus a selection of Buttoned Up products valued at $50! Her chance of winning is 1 in 150.

Required Entry: Leave a comment telling me an area in your life or home that has been the biggest organizational challenge for you. (Please leave a valid email address in your comment or make sure one is visible in your blogger profile).

Extra Entries (optional): please make sure you do the required entry first! Please leave a separate comment for each extra entry, i.e. 1 comment=1 entry.

• Follow my blog publicly via Google Friends Connect (1 extra entry)
• Subscribe to my feed via email and leave your email address (1 extra entry)
• Follow Me on Twitter AND tweet the following message (1 extra entry per day) Yes! You may tweet once daily to increase your chances:

RT @luckytoddler #Win a copy of Pretty Neat & a chance to win $250 in prizes! http://bit.ly/pneat #giveaway #contest #sweepstakes

• Join VirtaPay and leave you user name (1 extra entry) New signups only. You will receive free $25 in your account upon signup. 
• "Like" me on Facebook and leave your FB name (1 extra entry)
• Follow me on Networked Blogs and leave your name (1 extra entry)
• Add me as your friend on Facebook and leave your name (1 extra entry)
• Grab my button and tell me where to find it (1 extra entry)
• Blog about this giveaway and link back to this post. Then leave the link in your comment (1 extra entry for mentioning this giveaway on your blog; 3 extra entries for a separate blog post).

Giveaway ends at 11:59 pm Central Time on 3/20/11
Open to US Residents Only

Winner will be chosen using random.org and will have 72 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen.

Thanks for entering and good luck!

Disclosure:I received a free copy of the book for review through Global Influence. No monetary compensation was provided. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Earn Unlimited Free Movie Rentals from Redbox Lucky to Have Friends Like You!

Redbox is known for $1 a night movie rentals. But what's even better? Unlimited FREE movie rentals! Redbox just kicked off a new promotion called Lucky to Have Friends Like You, which offers everyone the opportunity to score as many free one night movie rentals as they can from now through St. Patrick's Day (March 17th).

Here's how it works:

1. Sign-up at www.redbox.com/luckyus. The free online account allows you to see movies that are currently in redbox kiosks near you and reserve your picks before you get there.
2. Redbox will email you a unique web address that you can share with your friends.
3. Every time someone reserves a movie online through your unique web address, you’ll receive a free one-night DVD rental credit. 
Rental credits are valid for ten days after they’ve been deposited into your account.
4. If it is their first time reserving online, they’ll also receive a free one night rental credit.
5. Obviously you can't earn free movie rentals without the help of your friends. So put your social network to work. Share your custom link via email, Facebook, Twitter, blog, and whichever way you can think of!

Spread the word and you'll start rolling in free movies this March. Hope you'll enjoy a post-Oscar movie marathon with family and friends at no cost to you. Good luck!

Disclosure: I was compensated for my time by Redbox through Global Influence.

Mark Your Calendar for Child Passenger Safety Week & Twitter Party

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that nearly 3 out of 4 car seats are not used correctly. Are you confident that your car seat is properly installed? Whether or not, I'd suggest you have it inspected by a professional. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children ages 3 and older. As a parent, you should take positive measures to prevent that kind of tragedy from happening to your precious kid.

A great way to start is to join NHTSA's Child Passenger Safety Week from September 19-25 and the National Seat Check Saturday on September 25, during which communities nationwide will have certified technicians available to provide hands-on child safety seat inspections and advice for free! You may use this convenient locator to find nearby car seat inspection stations on National Seat Check Saturday and throughout the year. Instructional videos, handy informational flyers, and links to product ratings and recall lists are available at childcarsafety.adcouncil.org 

In addition, there will be a Child Passenger Safety Twitter Party on Wednesday, September 22 at 2 pm EST. NHTSA experts will be available to offer information about car seats and how to travel safely with children. Just follow @childseatsafety on Twitter and use the hashtag #CPSweek to join the conversation.

Don't forget to check out NHTSA's 4 Steps for Kids recommendations via the embedded widget.



Disclosure: By writing this post, I'm entered to win a gift card drawing as part of a Global Influence public service campaign.

SafeSocial Launches Today!

As a parent, your children's safety is your first priority. But in today's digital age, what can a parent do to protect her kids online as well as off?

These days, your teens' "friends" aren't just the kids hanging out in your family room - they're also the hundreds of contacts on their online "friend" and "buddy" lists. Did you know that more than 50 million teens (ages 13-17) are online worldwide? Or that the average number of "friends" on a list is 130? The totals are much higher for many teens.

SafeSocial, a new AOL product that launches today, can help you protect your children, even if you aren't a social media expert. SafeSocial helps you:

· Find out where your child has online accounts
· Know who your child is "friends" with online
· Get notified if your child is in a conversation about violence, suicide or drugs
· See photos your child has posted online, and others' photos in which your child has been tagged

Another benefit? You can monitor all this activity without being a "helicopter parent." Your child will have to agree to be monitored, but you won't need to connect with them on the social media accounts, or hover over their shoulders in person. You may see SafeSocial in action in the video below.



"Overall, social networking is an integral part of many teenage lives and an opportunity for your kids to learn to express themselves in a creative and responsible fashion," says AOL Consumer Advisor Regina Lewis. "It's too big a trend to ignore. You can embrace it with SafeSocial on your side."

Interested in trying it out? Get your free 30-day trial of SafeSocial here.

Disclosure: By writing about SafeSocial, I'm entered to win a gift card from Global Influence, who also provided all the necessary assets for this post.